Activities
NAMI CI organizes and sponsors a variety of activities that are open to the public, including meetings, courses, and annual events and awards.
Meetings
NAMI CI Monthly Educational Meetings
NAMI CI meetings are a place to learn about current issues impacting people affected by mental illnesses and to get to know NAMI members and other attendees. Meetings often feature speakers with special knowledge about particular mental health issues. Visit our resources page for upcoming topics and speakers.
Meetings are open to the public--in fact, we encourage all community members to come and learn about mental health issues.
Date: Third Tuesday of each month
Time: 7:00 pm
Place: Collegiate Presbyterian Church, Sheldon and West Streets, Ames (unless otherwise noted)
Family Support Group
Date: 4th Thursday of each month*
Time: 7:00 pm
Place: Trinity Christian Reformed Church (click for directions)
December's Family Support Group will be held on Thursday, December 29.
Courses
NAMI CI organizes the following free courses. Contact the NAMI CIoffice or visit our resources page for upcoming courses.
Peer-to-Peer Education Program
Peer-to-Peer is a 9 session course for individuals with severe brain disorders. Each two-hour session is taught by a team of three trained "mentors" who are personally experienced at living well with mental illness.Participants come away from the course with a binder of hand-out materials, as well as other tangible resources such as: an advanced directive; a relapse prevention plan; mindfulness exercises to help focus and calm thinking; and survival skills for working with providers and the general public.
Enrollment and materials for the course are free, but registration is required. Confidential.
Family-to-Family Education Program
Family-to-Family is a twelve session course for parents and other family members of adults who have mental illness. These classes focus on the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness, as well asthe knowledge and skills that family members need to cope more effectively.
Enrollment and course materials are free, but registration is required. Confidential.
Family-to-Family will be offered at the Boone DMACC campus on Monday evenings from 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm starting February 20, 2012. Carpooling will be arranged from Ames. Please call (515)292-9400 for more details or to register.
Visions For Tomorrow Program
Visions For Tomorrow is a eight session course for parents and caregivers of children and adolescents with serious emotional and mental disorders. These classes give strategies for facing day-to-day challenges; teach the facts about various childhood brain disorders; and offer support, resources, and strategies to cope.
Enrollment and course materials are free, but registration is required. Confidential.
Art Therapy Group
Enhance your creative side and increase your self-awareness in a playful, non-threatening way. You do not have to be an artist to benefit from Art Therapy!
Art Therapy uses creative processes such as painting, drawing, and collage making to improve emotional and mental health. This is an alternative approach to the traditional talk therapy and a way to learn and strengthen new coping skills. Art Therapy focuses on self-expression and intends to strengthen the inner self and teach participants to trust their environment. Art Therapy Group is being led by Willow McLaughlin Hill. Willow graduated from Iowa State University with a BA in Psychology and Design. She then got her Art Therapy Certificate from Grandview University in Des Moines, Iowa. Call the office at 292-9400 for more information.
Annual Events and Awards
NAMI CI stays active in the community with special events and fundraisers, such as those listed below. Visit our resources page for information about current events and awards.
Annual Garage Sale
Each August, NAMI CI holds a garage sale to raise funds for the organization. Garage sale items are donated by NAMI CImembers and other community members.
Stick Your Neck Out Awards
Each year, NAMI CI gives Stick Your Neck Out Awards to a person or persons who have "stuck their neck out" in the name of mental illness.
